What Feeds Below by Tatiana Schlote-Bonne

I would like to start by expressing my gratitude to NetGalley and Bindery Books for granting me access to this ARC. Additionally, I want to thank the author for crafting such a horrifyingly beautiful read.

SUMMARY - What Feeds Below by Tatiana Schlote-Bonne.

Best friends Jade and Petra, both orphaned in their youth, embark on Void Tour diving to seek treasure for eager tourists. The Void is a deep chasm that plunges into the earth, inhabited by terrifying flora and ferocious monsters lurking within its treacherous landscape. Their motivation? To escape the slums and for Petra to establish her own clinic, providing care to both people and the children at the orphanage.

All they have to do is hunt for relics or gems that will allow them to do this. While Petra is okay playing it safe in the first two levels, Jade insists they head further and reach the sixth layer because that is where the real treasure is. There big payout! Petra, hesitant but not wanting to disappoint Jade, who has been a consistent and the only person Petra could ever trust, she agrees.

However, when a job goes wrong and Jade goes missing, Petra must dive deeper than she feels comfortable to save her. Is she ready to face what’s down there, or will it consume her?

Thoughts - Ok, these are the types of books I live for… a book that brings on fear and phobias you didn’t know you had, even though you know you are safe. The feeling of being in the situation on these pages gave me both thrills and chills. It’s a psychological and emotional trauma that I thrive on. The ending was pure perfection, and every single chapter had me hooked. The pace of this book was incredible, and the world-building was on another level. I mean, we are talking about subterranean, botanical, sporror (spore horror), fungal horror. The details of each page were vivid and raw, the emotion visceral. I genuinely enjoyed this book; I love plants, having a florist background, and learning about fungi, plant science, and medicine. It’s so intriguing to me, so this really helped fill the craving for such genres.

Now let me talk about Jade and Petra for a sec. They start out as great characters, both super eager to fulfill the dreams of opening a clinic. But as you move through the book, oh my god, could they both get any more frustrating? I mean, yes! To Petra for character growth, but why was she so codependent or even overdependent for so long? I mean, I know why. But why?! Kudos to the author for creating Jade's characteristics and the way you slowly saw her change over time. These characters surely made the story, and let’s not forget Flint, because without him, this story wouldn’t have had the same outcome. I would also like to thank the author so much for leading me astray. While my mind knew the outcome, my very being knew what was coming. My goddamn heart was like, "Oh no, that’s not what’s happening; look at the pages, it’s going to be okay." I fell for everything I shouldn’t have, and now I’m questioning if my amateur detective skills are failing me. Or was the book just that good that I was hoping for something else? Let’s go with that!

I will say this: the only negative aspect I could think of in the book was not enough gore. I’ve read more intense scenes, so I needed something really shocking, but that is probably the only thing I could say. I think the psychological horror was just the right amount to send me off the cliff, so it’s still a 5-star read; I think maybe even higher. I am 100% rereading this when it releases. And the ending was absolute perfection, even if my heart doesn’t agree.

Now let’s dive into the world itself. I’m talking giant fungi, illuminated fungi, plants towering and deadly as predators. Pools of clear, glowing acid and creatures (osteopotus) that are something out of your nightmares. Each layer has a different layout, predators, fungi, and flora, but the fourth layer was the most interesting, in a claustrophobic, skin-crawling sense. I mean, who wouldn’t be creeped out about absolute darkness in deep water in tunnels where one wrong movement could trap you in there for eternity? Just that image makes me squirm. The layers created by the author really took phobias to another level. It wasn’t just horror with gore, but an atmospheric psychological horror with intense immersion and viscerally disturbing imagery. The fast pace of it all had me turning pages as quickly as breathing, and now I’m hungry for more. I highly recommend What Feeds Below as a great horror read. Thank you, Tatiana, for creating an epic journey to absolute chaos.

Artwork by Kelsea (me)